Metagame Mentor: The Top Fifteen Standard Decks in February 2026

Hello, and welcome back to Metagame Mentor, your weekly guide to the top decks and latest Constructed developments on the path to the Pro Tour. After the exciting Standard rounds at Pro Tour Lorwyn Eclipsed, the format once again took center stage at last weekend's Regional Championship for South America. The Standard excitement continues this weekend with Arena Championship 11 and the Regional Championships for the United States and Canada set to deliver more high-stakes Standard action.

Joao Quege claimed the title of South America's latest Regional Champion with a dominant run on Boros Dragons. With this breakout finish, Quege earned an invitation to Magic World Championship 32. In addition, the Top 10 players from South America's Regional Championship who had not yet qualified for Pro Tour Secrets of Strixhaven locked up their spots for that event.

The Standard Metagame and Win Rates

Standard, the rotating 60-card format that currently allows expansion sets from Wilds of Eldraine forward, is one of Magic's premier competitive formats. To sketch a picture of what awaits at the top tables in mid-February 2026, I analyzed the metagame and win rates (in non-mirror, non-bye, non-draw matches) from last weekend's 211-player South America Regional Championship in Santiago. I also incorporated the metagame breakdown for this weekend's Arena Championship 11.

The "Other" category collects such decks as Gruul Harmonizer, Boros Aggro, Bant Rhythm, Azorius Artifacts, Dimir Deceit, Dimir Control, Izzet Prowess, Selesnya Landfall, Four-Color Elementals, Simic Omniscience, and more.

At the South America Regional Championship, Badgermole Cub decks fell to 15% of the field. Even more striking was the shift in shell. Mono-Green Landfall, rather than Simic Rhythm, became the card's most visible home. Mono-Green Landfall was the best-performing archetype of the weekend, with a 64.6% win rate.

Historically, Mono-Green Landfall has struggled against Simic Rhythm and Bant Airbending, which helps explain its near absence at Pro Tour Lorwyn Eclipsed. But as those archetypes receded, Mono-Green Landfall found itself ideally positioned. That said, the pendulum continues to swing. Simic Rhythm rebounded to 11.8% of the Arena Championship 11 metagame, and decks featuring at least one copy of Badgermole Cub climbed back to 40% of that tournament's field, up sharply from 15% in Santiago.

This weekend, players preparing for the Regional Championships in the United States and Canada must make a careful prediction. Should they anticipate another Cub-heavy field or a renewed wave of anti-Cub strategies? A correct prediction could chart a clear path to success, but the answer remains uncertain.

Let's now take a closer look at my top fifteen decks in Standard right now, ordered roughly from most to least likely to appear at the top tables of a major event.

A-Tier: Mono-Green Landfall

A-Tier: Izzet Lessons

B-Tier: Dimir Excruciator

B-Tier: Dimir Midrange

B-Tier: Simic Rhythm

B-Tier: Azorius Tempo

C-Tier: Boros Dragons

C-Tier: Izzet Elementals

C-Tier: Izzet Spellelementals

C-Tier: Mono-Red Aggro

D-Tier: Rakdos Monument